Ahead of 2020, we worked with both companies to make every cover and several ads in The New York Times Magazine Lens-enabled throughout the year. This meant NYT readers could use Google Lens to learn more about the content they cared about. As 2020 unfolded and social justice movements supporting Black and LGBTQ+ rights gained prominence in the United States, we decided to use the campaign as an opportunity to show support for these movements in a meaningful way, all while introducing Google Lens to the New York Times readership.

To highlight these emerging movements, we created "living surface" ads that brought to life the stories and history of individuals who helped win rights for the discriminated and marginalized. Highlighting art and culture, these dynamic animations created moments of surprise and delight that were also informative and educational. 

With a readership of over 130 million subscribers, the campaign enjoyed high visibility across the New York Times Newspaper and Magazine. Product awareness and brand perception earned significant increases, with 90% of those surveyed saying they'd try Google Lens in the future.

Readers rated their brand perception of Google Lens as a strong leader in Al technology and first to market innovation. The initial response to the first issue showed a 62% lift in familiarity, likelihood, product awareness and brand perception for first time users. Overall, positive sentiment towards the brand increased with each issue and an overwhelming number of readers pulled out their phones to interact with the ads across all ages, genders and social status.

Client: Google
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